The Quiet Magic of Barbuda and the Model Who Embodies It

By Martrecia Alleyne for Photo-Synthesis Designs

Photography is the closest thing to magic that I know of from its ability to capture and preserve a moment in time, to its transformative capabilities through modern technology. But, it’s photography’s ability to capture the spirit of a person, their hopefulness, genuine gratitude, humility and beauty with the push of a button and the seamless yet complicated process that is perhaps the most magical thing about it.

And, nothing could be more true of the experience I had photographing Sylene Deazle a young relatively inexperienced model from the beautiful island of Barbuda, as I watched a quiet and unassuming ‘everyday’ woman from an island with a population so small that it doesn’t even meet the size requirements for targeted social media ads, transform before my eyes into a seasoned model worthy of her very own six page spread – pure magic.

But, coming from Barbuda, arguably one of the most resilient islands in the Caribbean, given its ongoing recovery from the devastation of category five hurricane Irma in 2017, it is not so farfetched to assume that everyone living on the island possesses some magic, perhaps that is why they can all look to the clouds and accurately forecast the weather.

Even as Sylene modeled her heart out against her island backdrop of pink sand beaches and the stunning Frigate Bird Sanctuary that have left people the world over mesmerized, she reminisced on a time before hurricane Irma when she claims the island was even more beautiful. Then, she explained Barbuda was full of familiar faces and wildlife, today some of the eeriness of their absence remains and many new faces and even new wildlife have come to take their place on her island paradise.

But, even as she reflected on the quaint time period of before and after Irma, a concept that only a Barbudian could fully grasp, with the entirety of that unique trauma of loss balanced with the strength of survival, Sylene was quick to see the silver lining as the island is working to rebuild stronger, with new homes, new roads and new job opportunities.

The ambitious and optimistic young model and mother even shared some of her hopes and dreams for the future on her gorgeous island starting with a tertiary education institution, so Barbudians won’t have to travel to Antigua to further their education, a larger hospital, more road repairs and an improved horse racing facility. Sylene also hopes that Barbuda will tap into their natural resources like their salt pond to begin exporting salt to the rest of the world. Sylene sees a bright future ahead for the island of Barbuda and through her optimism I’ve come to share her vision, I also have a feeling there’s a lot more modelling in her future.

This photoshoot was completed as part of Photo-Synthesis Designs’ UNESCO Creative Caribbean grant funded project with the support of UNESCO Caribbean, the ACPUE Culture Programme and the European Union. Sylene is wearing pieces from Photo-Synthesis Designs most recent collection ‘Long Time’ which features prints with images of both Antigua and Barbuda amongst other Caribbean islands, as well as, accessories courtesy Footnotes Antigua boutique located in Redcliffe Quay, St. Johns Antigua.